Chapter 496: The Observatory
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The goddess of creation had always been the one that Hao Ren was concerned about the most. Every time Hao Ren had a deeper understanding of the Plane of Dreams, he realized that the goddess of creation played a very influential part in it. In the beginning, Hao Ren thought that the goddess of creation was just a mighty mortal, or a primeval creature in Holletta, but now, the goddess of creation was starting to look like a real god.
She had created ecosystems on countless planets in the Plane of Dreams via sowing. The Seed of Origin she created could breed creatures like the First Born, and her influence spanned along numerous planets across time and space. The power of the goddess could be sensed by the Disciples of Glory. But, the First Borns on different planets seemed to be in a frenzy and it probably had something to do with the goddess of creation.
"If only we could find more ecological planets. If there are any traces of the First Born and the end of the world on a third planet, our guess is basically correct," Vivian said. She stooped down to pick up a piece of dark gray debris that fell off the tentacles, and twisted it into dust. "I wonder if there are any surviving First Borns... It would be great if we could follow this clue and find the goddess of creation."
"I saw a planet covered in an endless sea of blood in my vision," Hao Ren mentioned the vision he saw under the influence of the gigantic brain creature. "It should be the place where the goddess of creation is. Maybe we can start with that giant brain..."
"The thing is, Holletta has to first be able to catch that cult. Only they know how to summon the giant brain," Nangong Wuyue said. "The Firts Born destroyed the whole of Dragonspine Ridge, and I'm afraid that no clues were left behind. Can the Disciples of Glory find those heretics?"
"Let's talk about it later. If there's no other way, we'll do it ourselves... Or, ask Marshal Ophra to help out," Vivian said as she dusted the dark gray powder off her hands. Upon looking up, she gazed at her surroundings. "Do you guys feel that... something isn't right with the direction of the wind?"
Hao Ren then realized that there seemed to be something wrong with the atmosphere around them. The strange wind that kept changing speeds was blowing from all directions. There was a chill in the messy wind. Just as everyone was beginning to be aware of this, the wind seemed to realize that they were raising their vigilance, and instantly increased its speed several times. All of a sudden, the surrounding dust was flying around in the air!
"It's the vengeful spirit!" A layer of colorful magical halo immediately appeared around Becky's body. She lifted her sword and shouted, "Defense, now!"
The ancient ghosts of Tannagost were still wandering the planet. These strange creatures that had been turned into vengeful spirits, though unconscious, still identified intruders who entered their territory. Apparently, there was a vengeful spirit wandering around Alamanda, and Hao Ren as well as the rest of them were being targeted.
A misty protective barrier suddenly appeared around Nangong Wuyue and enveloped everyone in its safe protective layer, but the strange wind around it had rapidly evolved into a strong storm. Debris and dust on the ground were rolled up in the air by the storm, forming a tornado up to hundreds of meters in size. As the chaotic wind wall approached them, pale phantoms and bright lightning constantly appeared in the storm.
However, they had dealt with a vengeful spirit before, and they were all experienced. They started to attack the wind wall. Hao Ren then took his demon-hunting fish daughter whem the storm was slightly weakened. "Lil Pea, get ready—sing!"
The little kid immediately sang, her words all over the place. "@##￥￥! ##@￥@%%... ￥&..."
A strange creaking sound came from the storm. The tornado, which was hundreds of meters high abruptly stopped and the sand, gravel as well as dust in the air began to crackle down like hail. Vivian looked at Lil Pea with a weird expression and said, "It really works, but I still find it weird no matter how many times I look at it."
"Well, when do we ever look normal?" Hao Ren was holding Lil Pea by her tail like she was a hand-held loudspeaker. Her singing caused a big hole in the storm wall, whichever direction he was pointing her at. He looked like he was playing happily with his fish daughter. "Although the song has no lyrics, she actually sings it quite well... Lil Pea, next song," he said.
The MDT hit Hao Ren in the back of his head and said, "Stop playing around. More and more vengeful spirits are coming this way. We should leave now!"
"Which way is safer?" Hao Ren immediately yelled—he was not ready to leave Tannagost. There was still a lot to figure out in this lost world.
Vivian immediately focused her mind to communicate with the little bats she had released. Then, she clapped her hands and said, "A bat has found a very suspicious relic. Let's go that way."
The MDT shouted, "If we rush out by force, we might be caught by the vengeful spirits on the way. Tell me the bat's approximate position, let's go there by teleportation."
Vivian immediately focused her mind on the topographical map that her little bats had provided. She then passed it over to the MDT telepathically. The next second, everyone disappeared from the crumbling storm.
A second later, they came to a hill, hundreds of kilometers away from Alamanda. The vengeful spirit did not seem to notice this place: it seemed quite calm.
Lil Pea was still singing in Hao Ren's hands, but she suddenly realized that the environment had changed. The little kid opened her eyes and saw that the storm had vanished and clapped her hands happily: she thought it was because of her.
"What is this place…?" Hao Ren looked around and found that it was a barren hill. Behind him was a peculiar tower-style building, glittering with a light golden luster. "What is this?" he asked.
"I don't know. The bats found it half way. Could be one of the relics left behind by the Tannaeans." Vivian beckoned her little bats back into her body and continued, "Looks like it's intact."
Lily was surprised. "Why didn't the First Born tear down this place?"
"The aim of the First Born was to destroy the Second Born's ecosphere. If there's no one here, of course, the First Born would be too lazy to care about it," Hao Ren said while he approached the building. It appeared to be a lookout platform. He discovered the gate and found that it was open.
The Tannaeans who had been stationed in the tower must have evacuated the place when the First Born approached their line of defense. They did not think of returning, so the place was abandoned in a hurry.
Like all the other buildings belonging to the Tannaeans, the tower also had an unknown source of light to illuminate it. Hao Ren walked in and found that it could actually be a research facility.
After passing through two gates, they could see that there was an old equipment room inside. All kinds of instruments and equipment occupied almost half the space of the big room. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust, but they did not see any big damages on those devices. The technology of the Tannaeans was very advanced, especially when it came to material science. The things they made were more durable than things made by other mortals.
"Landlord, look over there." Lily dragged Hao Ren by his sleeve and pointed at a wall not too far away. There was a huge star chart hanging on the wall and also some boards that seemed to be used for keeping a record of events.
Nangong Wuyue dusted the hanging board with mist and found that it was a complicated planetary motion record along with some confusing formula charts. "This place looks like an observatory, doesn't it?" she asked.
The MDT was emitting a faint blue light and floating around in the room. It scanned the ancient devices, which had been around for 10,000 years, and suddenly, it emitted a loud whistle. "Yo, I'm a genius. I think I've found a readable memory."
Everybody's attention was immediately on the MDT, but Hao Ren was attracted by something else.
He saw something strange on a console of some sort not far away from him. The air there was slightly distorted, and there seemed to be an invisible energy field or gravitational anomaly.
He walked forward slowly, while the distorted air did not experience any abnormal movement. Seeing this, Hao Ren boldly stretched his hand out.
A strange memory suddenly materialized in his mind.